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‘I’m here as ordered.’ Sayrid tore her gaze from the scene of a particularly close embrace.
‘All ready, I see.’
She kept the furs pulled to her chin and hoped he’d douse the torch. She wanted her stepmother to be wrong about her back, but she also wanted one more night in his arms if she turned out to be right. ‘I can’t afford to have any more gowns ripped. Magda and Inga were already far too kind.’
His eyes crinkled at the corners, transforming his face. ‘All for the sake of a gown?’
‘Yes. A gown which your daughter made.’
Her voice faltered and she wondered if he expected her to invite him into the bed. Or if she should offer him a drink. She sank into the pillows, wishing she had considered this before.
‘Do you like my improvements?’ he asked, breaking the awkward silence which had sprung up.
‘I wondered where they had come from.’
‘Byzantium. A present.’
Sayrid nodded, hating the small curl of jealousy at the woman who had given him the hangings. ‘An expensive present.’
‘I saved the man’s life and family. He owed me.’ He nodded towards them. ‘It is the first time I’ve had them hung.’
‘They look like they were made for this room.’
His smile became positively wolfish. ‘It helps to set the mood, particularly when there is a naked woman in my bed.’
Her face burnt worse than before. ‘After this afternoon, I didn’t think you would require any assistance of that sort.’
‘Sayrid!’
‘What do you expect me to say?’
It was his turn to look uncomfortable. ‘Not that.’
The bed sank under his weight. She struggled to keep her place and not tumble towards him. The ropes were far looser than they should have been. She made a mental note to get them seen to.
‘Do you want to be here?’ he asked in low voice, reaching towards her.
She put her fingers in his palm. He covered them.
‘I’m trying to be understanding. I want what is best for everyone. Discord helps no one.’
‘My men have been teasing me all day about my evident desire for you and my very bad temper.’
He raised her captured hand to his lips. The tiny touch made her feel like a precious piece of glass.
A flame flickered in her belly. If she hadn’t loved him already, she’d fall for him now. She bit her knuckle. She couldn’t love him, not so soon. And her love was doomed. She couldn’t be the sort of woman he required. But she could have tonight, her heart argued.
‘I’m trying to uphold my end of the bargain.’
‘What, greeting your husband from bed?’ He gave a bark of laughter. ‘Who taught you that trick?’
‘The new gown is far too pretty and delicate. Inga pointed out that I had already torn a shoulder seam.’ Her cheeks burnt. ‘I believe it happened in the storeroom.’
He shook his head. ‘I’m going to show you what it is like to go slowly. I am going to treat you how you should have been treated yesterday.’
She opened her mouth to protest, but he laid a finger across her lips. ‘Hush. I’m in charge and you will obey me for once.’
He followed his order with a kiss that took her breath away, gentle but persistently persuading. She opened her mouth and drew his tongue in.
One hand cupped the back of her head while the other trailed down her neck, making feather-light touches which did strange things to her insides.
He went ever lower until he reached her nipples. He rolled first one and then the other between his thumb and forefinger until they ached. She arched her back, wanting more as the heat began to rise in her middle.
He lazily moved his mouth down her body. He took each nipple in turn, drawing small circles, tugging at them and tracing their outline. With each touch, the heat inexorably rose. Her hips writhed under him, seeking relief.
She tugged at his tunic, needing to feel his skin against hers.
He nodded and slowly took it off. The torchlight turned his skin into gold. Her fingers traced the faint sprinkling of hair on his chest, accidentally brushing his nipples which hardened under her touch.
He groaned but allowed her a chance to explore. With each touch, her confidence grew. She grasped the waistband of his trousers. But he shook his head and captured her wrists, raising them above her, making her arch her back so that her breasts jutted out.
‘Let me enjoy you,’ he rasped out.
He sank down, trailing open-mouthed kisses down her body, teasing her. His tongue lapped at her navel, round and round before dipping lower.
She gasped as his head went to the apex of her thighs.
‘Let me taste you. There. Please,’ he said in a ragged voice.
