‘What is it you want, Mairead?’The words came out rough, revealing the frustration curled within him.He certainly knew whathewanted.
Her, naked on his bed, laid out for him to savour with his hands.And his mouth.
She threaded her hand into his hair and pulled his face down.‘The freedom to choose.’
Balor didn’t ask permission but crushed his mouth to hers, taking what she’d dared to offer.Her arms went around his neck, and he pressed her back against the door, resting his knee between her legs.She kissed him back, opening to him, and touching his tongue with her own.
He was desperate to have her in whatever way she offered.He explored her, teasing her lips and letting instinct guide him.Already, his pulse was pounding, the need aching beyond anything he’d ever imagined.He wanted this woman with every breath he took.
‘Does your family know you’re here in my chamber?’he murmured against her lips.
‘No.’Her voice was a breathy whisper.‘My uncle would murder me if he did.’
A soft laugh escaped him.‘So, you didn’t just come here to talk about what you want to do next?’He was starting to wonder if Mairead had a sensual side of her own.Or whether he’d simply been acting like a bastard, exploiting her innocence.
Her cheeks flushed, but she didn’t rise to his bait.A blend of emotions passed over her face—fear, uncertainty, and her own yearning.She kept her hands on his chest, as if to feel his heartbeat.But she moved her fingers across his muscles, sliding them over the silver scar across the ridges of his abdomen in the barest caress that took him apart.
‘Tell me what you want, Mairead,’ he urged.
‘You’re talking too much,’ she said and pulled his mouth back to hers.His thoughts scattered, and he fully agreed with her.To bring her closer, he lifted her to straddle his thigh, despite her twisted skirts.
Now that he had better access to that sweet mouth, he plundered it, even knowing that the kisses were stolen.‘I enjoyed the bed last night,’ he said against her lips.‘But I wanted you in it with me.’He shifted his weight, and a startled cry broke from her as his thigh pressed against her intimately.Instantly, he stopped.‘What is it?’
She shook her head, her eyes pleading with him.And then he realized that…the movement of his thigh between her legs had caught her unawares, awakening her own needs.He caught her hips, watching as she closed her eyes and a gasp caught in her throat.
‘Do that again,’ she whispered as she clung to him.
Slowly, Balor rocked his thigh against the center of her womanhood.Her fingers dug into his shoulders, andshe trembled against him, as she leaned her head back.‘Balor, I—’
Her words broke off, and one of her legs grazed his own erection as she arched.He was going to lose control if he continued pleasuring her, and he didn’t care.Despite his own raging need, his desire to arouse her was stronger.He moved his hands to her waist, gentling his kiss as he moved his thigh in a slow, shifting rhythm.
He reasoned with himself that he could claim her like this, and no harm was done.She was still a virgin, still untouched.
But she was biting her lip, her breathing unsteady as he moved.What he was doing was good, but it wasn’t enough.Slowly, he moved one hand higher, resting it just beneath her breast as he shifted his thigh.
And when she moved his hand to cover her breast, cupping the generous curve of her, his body turned to rigid stone.He was thankful the door was bolted, so no one could come in and interrupt this.He traced her breast, finding the cockled nipple, and gently began circling it with his thumb.
Another moan broke from her, and she was gripping his hair now, nearly undone by what was happening.She had never looked at him like this before, and he was determined to drive her into the sweet darkness of oblivion.
It didn’t matter that his own body was grazing the edge of honour.He intended to explore her body, learning everything he could.He loosened the laces of her bodice, adjusting her clothing until his hand covered her bare breast.
There was an immediate change in her demeanour, and she kissed him again, her tongue tangled with his as he stroked her nipple, wishing he could expose her flesh and see that beautiful breast.
‘If I could, I would have you naked right now,’ he said.‘I would lay you down on that bed and spend hours with my mouth on your skin.’
He moved his hand to her other breast and found it as erect as the first.He teased it mercilessly, watching her as she continued to move against his leg.‘Would you like that, Mairead?’
She gave a slight cry as he circled her nipple with his thumb.And then, without warning, she pressed herself hard against him, rocking and moaning as she trembled.She gripped his neck, and he pressed his mouth to her throat, watching as she came apart with her pleasure, a cry breaking forth from her throat.
More than anything in the world, he wanted to be inside her at this moment, feeling her body surrounding his as she shuddered.He pressed her back, and she seemed to sense what he wanted, wrapping her legs around his waist.
‘Don’t stop,’ she pleaded, her breathing unsteady.
Balor groaned, driving himself against her, through the folds of her gown, while he held her against the wall.Instinct guided him, and she kissed him hard as he gripped her hips.Despite the barrier of their clothing, she arched, shattering a second time as he ground himself against her.He could barely breathe, the raw needs coursing through him until abruptly, he found release and saw stars.
It felt as if he’d just touched a piece of heaven, and nothing could have prepared him for this.Slowly, Balor lowered her down.Mairead’s cheeks were flushed, her eyes glazed with the aftermath of her own release.She looked stricken, as if she couldn’t believe what had just happened between them.
He let her go, not knowing what to say or do.Maybe it was best to say nothing at all.He stepped away, reaching for his fallen tunic on the floor.
